Life with Two Boys

I'm not sure I can speak for Josh, based on his frequent pitiful moanings of "Why did we have two kids?", but I for one am still glad that each boy has a brother to play with. That being said, they do keep us from doing things that we would otherwise be able to do - like take off for a weekend trip to Bahrain, like our friends from the compound did, or even jump in the car for a fast and easy trip to the store without the hassles of car-seats and diaper bags. And of course, we miss having grandparents around to take the kids off our hands every now and then! Misha misses his weekly sleepovers and playtime with the grandparents too.

Misha is as active and creative as ever. I could hear him yelling to me from the kitchen one day, and I entered just in time to dissuade my little Spiderman from taking a giant leap off the counter top. He's always building with Legos, coloring, cutting and taping, playing cars, or arranging his toys for circus. And while sometimes he is good at entertaining Sebastian, most of the time Misha sees his brother as a "wrecker" of all his things. I guess you can't blame him too much, because Sebastian is at the age where he excels at wrecking things like Legos and paper projects.

Sebastian is taking after his brother and becoming an active little monkey as well. We bought Misha a step-stool to ease his access to the sink, but the stool has created more problems than it solved. After more than enough dashes to the bathroom to rescue Sebastian from the top step (as he bounced happily away, oblivious to what would happen if he fell), we ended up folding up the stool and stashing it away. Misha, meanwhile, has found other methods to brush his teeth, namely, climbing on the bidet and walking across the bathroom counter. Good grief.

Despite teething and the colds that come and go, Sebby is a happy and curious baby. He is getting so smart now! His latest favorite thing to do is put small toys into a bowl, dump them out, and put them in again. It's great for everybody, as this can occupy him for hours. He can also stack Legos four high now. Maybe soon he will help Misha build instead of demolishing his buildings...

He has also started saying a word - "uh oh!" It's so cute, and he even says it at appropriate moments, like when he drops something or when we're changing a messy diaper. :)

Whenever we're outside, like at the pool, Sebby always attracts lots of attention, especially with that fluffy light hair of his that never lies flat. We've met several people in the compound now with Sebastian's help!

Sebastian his this cute little "laptop" toy that speaks in Arabic, saying things like "Ana uhibok!" (I love you) and "Anta sadiqi!" (You are my friend).

Misha, smiling smugly, shows off the robot he built by looking at the picture that came with his Legos.

Misha in KFC. I include this only because it is the tiniest, oddest little KFC I have ever seen. We resorted to KFC, wanting to stay close to our shopping destination. The outside has two doors - one for single men, and one for families. A cement wall divides the two sections. The family side has two booths, with just barely enough room to walk by to get to the counter to order. I assume the singles section is very small as well. The KFC chicken tastes quite like I remember it, but sadly, all of my favorite sides (mashed potatoes, biscuits) do not exist here - although they do provide french fries and hamburger buns in their stead. Hum.

Misha with his new dream catcher. Thanks, Great Grandma Mary!

Bathtime is done; now it's time for bed. Goodnight, boys!